Photo story and text by Cole Lowery
Greensboro, Georgia is a small town filled with big farm lands. One of these plots is known as the Copelan farm land. Divided amongst 4 family members, Russell Copelan, 39, owns the section which used to be the dairy farm. Although it is no longer in business, Russell still raises cows and tends to the farm’s needs daily. The land itself has been in the family for over 7 generations, although it has been divided among a few family members as time has progressed.
Russell works an underground plumbing and maintenance job, but his main work is the farm itself. Each day start off the same; chores around the property. First the cows have to be fed both feed in a silo on the farm, as well as hay he collects from around the property over the year. Feeding the cows can take time. Older cows and calves must be fed separately to insure each get enough to eat. While the cows eat, he counts them every morning. Russell describes the thought of losing a calf or cow as stressful and would distract him all day if he wasn’t positive they were all present.
Afternoon chores can bring fun adventures. Generally, they start off with simple things like installing a new trough or fixing a fence, but sometimes he winds up chasing down an escaped animal. Cows can be curious creatures, and sometimes need to be wrangled back to the property. Next on the list is more of a hobby than a chore for Russell; hog trapping is essential in order to protect his land, but Russell adds his own twist to it. Instead of just killing the animal, he keeps, domesticates, and sometimes even breeds the hogs. This allows him to have more meat than just the cows he slaughters.
Overall living on the farm can be hard work. Russell’s house is over 100 years old and doesn’t even have AC or heating. He chops his own wood to heat his house during the winter, but he loves every second of it. The seclusion from other people give him the ability to do what he pleases in the quiet of his own little world.
Cole Lowery
I’m Cole and I am a sophomore Visual Communications major here at UofSC. Every year of high school, besides freshman year, I spent just about every waking moment in the news room. Since discovering my love for telling stories, I have done all that I can to become a better journalist. My specialty lies in broadcast, and more recently I have been trying to work on both my photography and writing skills to obtain my future dream job as a photo journalist for National Geographic.